ANKARA The heads of the Turkish and U.S. armed forces discussed joint strategies against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq during a meeting in Ankara on Sunday, the Turkish military said in a statement.Turkish chief of general staff Hulusi Akar met his U.S. counterpart Joseph Dunford hours after U.S.-backed Syria Democratic Forces (SDF) launched an operation to liberate the Syrian city of Raqqa from Islamic State."Joint combat methods against Daesh (Islamic State) in Syria and Iraq, namely al-Bab and Raqqa, were discussed for the coming days," the statement said, referring to two Syrian cities.

The two military chiefs also discussed the actions of the Kurdish YPG, a group backed by the United States but seen as a hostile force by Turkey, in Syria and Iraq and the risks of sectarian clashes in the region, the Turkish statement said.